Ravenous (1999) watchable pre Civil War Western about a cannibal haunting the Sierra Nevada, gets a bit ridiculous at times 6.5/10

Dead In Tombstone (2013) Danny Trejo comes back from the dead courtesy of the Devil (Mickey Rourke) to dispense vengeance upon the gang who murdered him. Lots of Spaghetti Western cliches done badly but still watchable 6/10

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"When you feel that rope tighten on your neck you can feel the devil bite your ass"!

I liked the splatter attitude of the extreme violence, but the directing of the action scenes was mostly forgettable. I also liked the old fashioned looking stop motion things, as long as I take at them as a Harryhausen homage.

Most characters were super boring and very badly written, and the acting was also below average. The intended humour worked rarely, but there was some unintended humour.

The only good scene was the miscarried presentation of the robot. Apart from that it was really a total bore.

I'm not surprised. It's a very funny movie, but you have to have a sense of humor to enjoy it. I'm sure you'd much rather watch a Jerry Lewis movie.

Stanton is right that the standout scene is the one in the boardroom with the demo that goes wrong, but there are other good bits. I've always liked the moment when Dick Jones confronts Bob Morton in the executive washroom. It builds nicely and the dialog is a riot. When he gets to, "But there was always respect," I always bust a gut laughing.

Kurtwood Smith (as Clarence J. Boddicker)--this is his finest moment. Has he ever given a better line reading than "Bitches leave"? And when he tries to pick up Dick Jones' secretary (played by Smith's real-life wife) he's hilariously slimy. But maybe the best thing is the exchange between Boddicker and Jones, which, it turns out, is actually a negotiation. All the while Clarence is needling Jones, calling him "Dick," but as soon as he gets what he wants, it's "Richard."

The Harryhausen stuff is not only a homage, it's also a clever spoof. The pay-off is when we see the stop-motion dinosaur being used in a car ad (also, when the robot falls down the stairs and can't get up and makes animal noises).

The plotting isn't bad. I particularly enjoy the ending when Dick Jones has to get fired before he can be killed. In a film with a very strong anti-corporate message that was a nice touch.

Logged

That's what you get, Drink, for not appreciating the genius of When You Read This Letter.

Yep, it is sometimes funny, but sometimes it is only intended to be funny, but isn't. There is a satirical tenor in it, but it can't overcome the general primitivity. Ok there are 2 or 3 more nice (but short) scenes or better moments, not enough to save an overall pretty dull film.

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation 6/10Quite as fun (in a less irreverent but maybe more effective way) as the previous one, still not very well directed and most serious dialogues are laughable (where is the talented guy who wrote The Usual Suspects?). The plot could have been interesting but they made it dull. It still kind of work.

My favorite installment of the series is still the 3rd one: best bad guy, best opening scene (may be best opening scene ever in this kind of action film), best director. I used to like M:I2 at the time (I was young and innocent) but the last time I tried it I couldn't even finish it. I've never been a fan of the first film although the noirish atmosphere should have been enough to earn my vote.

A Neo Noir/Film Soleil. A silver tongued grifter/fire bug (Johnson) pulls into a West Texas desert flyspeck driving a '59 Studebaker Hawk. He scams his way into working as a used car salesman and begins to court the lots accountant (Connelly). The lots owner's over the top femme fatale in heat wife (Masden) has other ideas. This film has that let's flip over a rock and see what crawls out/highwaycar wreck quality that keeps you watching to see what will happen next. Nice desert cinematography with a great soundtrack by Jack Nitzsche played by John Lee Hooker, Miles Davis, Taj Mahal, Roy Rogers and drummer Earl Palmer. Surprisingly good 9/10

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"When you feel that rope tighten on your neck you can feel the devil bite your ass"!